As electronic assemblies have shrunk into ever-smaller packages, electronics density has increased and overall board size has decreased. Electronic assemblies often comprise a plurality of PCBs that must be electrically interconnected. Along with components and assemblies, PCB interconnects have had to shrink to smaller footprints and increased densities. In the case of very small PCBs, the components that provide this electrical interconnection between boards can occupy much of the available space on the PCB.
Typically, interconnection components are configured as one or more rows of equal-spaced (regular pitch) connector pins. Such interconnection components are often configured in two parts. A first part includes a header that provides mechanical support for pins that extend from the header. A second part includes a receptacle with a plurality of mating connector sockets into which the pins are received.
The header is located in a rectangular area of a first PCB, with back ends of the pins soldered into holes in the first PCB. Similarly, the receptacle is located in a rectangular area of a second PCB, with back ends of the connector sockets soldered into holes in the second PCB. Positioning of the header and the receptacle on the first and second PCBs, respectively, is typically determined by physical requirements for locating the first and second PCBs within the electronic assembly. Once the header and receptacle are positioned on their respective PCBs, PCB traces must then be routed to connect the pins and sockets to whatever electronic components they are connected to.